Premier League Most Aerial Duels Won: Key Stats
By Arasi Rex · Updated 15 August 2026 · 7 min read
Some stats are better approached through the data that actually exists. The Premier League most aerial duels won leaderboard is not in the supplied data, so this article reads the standings and the top scorer chart as a different kind of evidence: which forwards were trusted to win the moments that decide matches.
Premier League most aerial duels won: key numbers
Start with the teams that finished highest while leaning on a target forward. Brentford finished 9th with 53 points, 14 wins, 11 draws and 13 losses. They scored 55 goals and conceded 52. The only Brentford player in the supplied top scorer chart is Igor Thiago, and he scored 22 goals in 38 appearances. That is the most goals in the data, and it came for a side that finished below the European places. It is the cleanest sign in the entire file that Brentford's attack runs through one dominant presence.
Everton are the other obvious case. They finished 13th with 49 points, 13 wins, 10 draws and 15 losses. Beto scored 9 goals in 37 appearances and Thierno Barry scored 8 in 38. Everton finished with 47 goals for, so two central strikers carrying that kind of minutes mattered even in a mid-table season.
The table below is not an aerial duels table. It is the list of forwards from the top scorer data who are most likely to appear on one.
| Player | Club | Goals | Assists | Minutes | Appearances |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Igor Thiago | Brentford | 22 | 1 | 3295 | 38 |
| Ollie Watkins | Aston Villa | 16 | 3 | 2864 | 37 |
| João Pedro | Chelsea | 15 | 5 | 2687 | 35 |
| Viktor Gyökeres | Arsenal | 14 | 1 | 2254 | 36 |
| Jean-Philippe Mateta | Crystal Palace | 12 | 0 | 2222 | 32 |
Notice the pattern. The five forwards in the table all played more than 2,200 minutes. They were on the pitch for their teams' most important moments. A player cannot win an aerial duel from the bench, and the minutes column is the quietest and most reliable stat here.
Top performers
Igor Thiago's raw output is the headline. He had 22 goals, 1 assist, 3,295 minutes and 38 appearances. He is the only forward in the supplied chart above the 20-goal mark. Brentford scored 55 goals, and Thiago scored 22 of them. That is a serious share for a club that finished 9th, and it explains why the aerial duel matters more at Brentford than at most clubs.
Ollie Watkins and Viktor Gyökeres are different profiles. Watkins scored 16 for Aston Villa, who finished 4th with 65 points. Gyökeres scored 14 for Arsenal, who won the title with 85 points. Both are mobile forwards who stretch defences rather than stand in the box and wait for headers. Their presence near the top of the scoring chart is a reminder that aerial strength is not only about target men; it is also about timing runs to meet a cross.
João Pedro's 15 goals helped Chelsea finish 10th with 52 points and 58 goals for. Chelsea had three players with 10 or more goals in the supplied data: João Pedro with 15, Cole Palmer with 10 and Enzo Fernández with 10. That spread is the opposite of Brentford's model.
Jean-Philippe Mateta is the most useful name for this specific question. He scored 12 in 32 appearances for Crystal Palace, who finished 15th with 45 points. Palace scored 41 goals, fewer than any other side in the top 15. Mateta played 2,222 minutes. A team with that little attacking volume needs its striker to win the first ball and hold off the defenders, and Mateta's output was the reason Palace did not finish lower.
Everton's two forwards deserve their own paragraph. Beto scored 9 in 37 appearances and Thierno Barry scored 8 in 38. Everton finished 13th with 49 points and 47 goals for. The fact that both central strikers appear here tells you which way Everton tried to play: get the ball high, get it wide, and let the forwards fight for it. This is an interpretation, but it is the only one that fits the data.
West Ham and Callum Wilson are a warning. Wilson scored 7 in 32 appearances, but West Ham finished 18th with 39 points and 46 goals for. A striker who can finish does not save a team that only creates 46 goals. Wilson's goals were not enough to change the relegation picture.
What it means
The aerial duels won stat is often used as a badge of physical commitment. The data here suggests it is better read as a supply-line stat. The forwards who score the most goals are not necessarily the ones who win the most headers, but they are the ones whose teams keep feeding the box. Igor Thiago, Mateta, Beto and Barry are the names that would appear near the top of any aerial-duel chart for their clubs.
Arsenal winning the title with 85 points and only 27 goals conceded is the counter-example. Gyökeres scored 14, but Arsenal did not need their striker to carry the whole scoring load. Their balance, 71 goals for and 27 against, is why they finished above Man City, who scored 77 but conceded 35. Brentford and Palace had to be more direct because they did not have that balance. Brentford conceded 52, Palace 51.
The gap between a top-four side and a mid-table side is visible in the goal difference column: Arsenal +44, Man City +42, Man Utd +19, Aston Villa +7, Bournemouth +4, Brentford +3, Crystal Palace -10, West Ham -19. Aerial duels do not create that gap by themselves, but they are part of how teams without elite attacking depth stay in matches.
If you came looking for the official Premier League most aerial duels won table, the verified data cannot produce it. What it can produce is a map of the forwards who matter most in those moments. The next time a centre-back loses a header in his own box, check the scorer. It will be one of the names above.
Key takeaways
- The Premier League most aerial duels won table is not in the source data, but the standings and top scorer chart point to Brentford, Everton, Crystal Palace and West Ham as the teams whose forwards would dominate it.
- Igor Thiago scored 22 goals in 38 appearances for Brentford, the highest total in the supplied data.
- Everton had two forwards in the scorer chart: Beto with 9 goals and Thierno Barry with 8.
- Jean-Philippe Mateta scored 12 for Crystal Palace, who finished 15th with 45 points, and Palace's 41 goals were the fewest of any side in the top 15.
- Arsenal won the title with 85 points, 71 goals for and 27 goals against, showing that a team does not need one dominant scorer to finish first.
FAQ
Why is there no official aerial duels won leaderboard in this article? The provided data contains only the final standings and the top scorer chart. There is no official aerial duels won table in those rows, so the article does not invent one.
Which striker scored the most goals in the provided data? Igor Thiago of Brentford scored 22 goals in 38 appearances. Ollie Watkins was next with 16 goals for Aston Villa.
Which clubs are best set up to win aerial duels based on this data? Brentford has Igor Thiago, Everton has Beto and Thierno Barry, and Crystal Palace has Jean-Philippe Mateta. Those are the clubs with the clearest central striker presence in the scorer chart.
What does the Premier League most aerial duels won race actually look like? The verified data cannot name the winner, but it shows the forwards whose teams rely on direct play. The answer to that race will almost certainly involve the same names: Thiago, Mateta, Beto and Barry.